How Far I've Fallen
by Izuna Misoka
Summary: When Yui makes the ultimate sacrifice for her adorable little kouhai, brand new emotions begin to bloom. YuiAzu
1. Yui Takes the Fall

AN: First story is ago! I've been in love with this pairing (I've probably read every single YuiAzu story on this site) and so I wanted to try out my own way of getting the kitten to confess. Any creative criticism is much appreciated. 

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><p>This winter had been colder than any other in the history of Japan. The "news" would have one believe that it was "average" but what did they know? This twin-tailed high school girl knew far better than them, after all, her stinging cheeks had never lied before.<p>

On this particularly frost-bitten morning the neverending barrage of snowflakes seemed to be much more analytical in their onslaught. They took breaks, focusing then on weighting her down by sticking to her coat. Then when her guard dropped they began their assault on her face. But it was to no avail. Her body still had warmth. This led the snowflakes to their much deserved demise. That is, until a cluster of much smarter snowflakes decided to take a chance and struck her in the eye. The girl winced just long enough for them to spring their trap.

"Ah, Azu-"The snow knew that the sempai's voice had come too late the kitten-like girl had already mistaken the lightly powdered ice for another patch of snow. It was only a matter of time until the girl's early demise.

Azusa's hand reached up to dust the snow from her eyes. As she did so her foot met a particularly slippery patch of ice and- _Thud. _She landed on the soft warm concrete. 'Huh?' she looked up and saw the sky above her (though one half was blurred by the bodies of lost snowflakes) and yet she still felt warmth radiating from her back. She tried to sit up only to find that something was wrapped around her stomach.

Her eyes snapped open wide as she realized what she was laying on "S-senpai?" she said earning a small chuckle from the human mattress.

"Azu-nyan" Yui said though her voice sounded farther away "are you ok?" Her hands left the kitten's middle allowing the girl to stand and survey her fallen friend. The kitten nodded and reached down to help her up. Yui tried to stand but her entire body protested the movement.

Azusa started to get worried. What if she had seriously injured her when she fell on her? Before she could voice her concerns the girl in question sat up.

After a few attempts they found that her leg couldn't support her weight. "Hehehe I must have twisted it"

"Eh?" The kouhai muttered "Yui-senpai why are you laughing! This is serious." The worry in her voice was as clear as day "You could be have broken your leg!"

Yui wobbled on her good leg putting some of her weight on the smaller girl "Eh~ but if I hadn't gotten hurt than Azu-nyan would have" Azusa sighed at her carefree senpai as she attempted to steady herself.

Yui wobbled a little more clutching onto the kouhai tightly. "Ah senpai that's too tight" Azusa exclaimed feeling pain spread through her shoulder from her senpai's death grip.

Yui mumbled something incoherent before going limp and pulling the two into a patch of snow.

"Mou, senpai I can't carry you" she said standing back up "You have to help."

When she turned to help her senpai back up she noticed the pained expression on her face.

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><p><em>Pit pat pit pat pitti pitti pit pit pat pat<em>

Mio sighed as she poked at her cake. _Pit pit pat pat_

It was clear from her eyes that she was truly worried and yet-_ pit pat pitti pat_

"Ritsu will you stop!" she exclaimed suddenly delivering a new bump to the head of her childhood friend. The girl had been drumming nonstop on whatever surface she could find for the past 20 minutes. Mugi, of course, hadn't been bothered at all by this. She had been happy enough just making sure everyone had plenty of tea. Yet, it was becoming evident that she was worried as well.

The source of their worry was the two empty chairs in the music room. Particularly the fact that both had full cups of tea, and Yui's spot even showcased a clearly uneaten slice of cake with an intact strawberry mounted on top.

Groaning, Ritsu finally spoke up, "You told them the right time right?" she said rubbing the bump on her head.

Mio nodded, "I even told Azusa to make sure Yui woke up on time"

"Eeh~" The band leader said back "so they're together huh~" This small statement, while harmless and simply a joke, earned her yet another lump and a very embarrassed childhood friend.

"Mou Ritsu, try to take this seriously It's not like Azusa to be la-"

Her scolding was interrupted by the sound of her phone vibrating on the wooden table. She flipped it open quickly. "Hello? Azusa?"

The only sound was the harsh wind meeting the mic on the other phone. Thinking she hadn't been heard Mio spoke up again "Azu-"

"Mio-senpai!" the girl on the other end suddenly shouted causing the bassist to wince.

"Azusa wha-"

"Mio-senpai" the voice was far quieter this time and Mio could pick up a hint of desperation "Yui-senpai is…Yui-senpai she fell… She hit her head pretty hard… I think her leg is broken" her voice was cracking all over the place and her sobs were getting louder.

The senpai on the other end of the phone had frozen, eyes wide mouth slightly agape. Mugi and Ritsu shared the same confused expression. Ritsu was first to act, removing the phone from her stunned friend.

"Nakano? What's going on?"

"Oh right hospital" the kitten murmured her voice still quivering before the line went dead.

"Hospital? Wait Nakano!" Ritsu closed Mio's phone and looked at its owner "Mio what's going on? Who needs to go to the hospital?"

The bassist was still frozen in place.

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><p>After a little coaxing from Ritsu she slowly returned to reality long enough to relay their kouhai's message. Before long all three were outside following the path to Yui's house. Merely a block away they finally heard the cries of an ambulance. Picking up the pace a bit the three ran to their panicked kouhai.<p>

On a stretcher being loaded into the vehicle was their cake-loving bandmate. Her expression was pained but she seemed to be breathing.

Azusa was shivering next to her senpai. Fresh tears welled in her eyes, she felt a hand land on her head but didn't take her eyes away from Yui until they had closed the doors and driven away.

So began the worst school day of Azusa's young life.

It began horribly enough, she had to tell her best friend Ui of her sister's heroic endeavor. Every time her mouth opened to tell her she thought about how she felt right now. Her thought's then went to how she would feel for the rest of the day. This silenced her. After all, if she felt this bad about what had happened how would Ui feel? She practically worshiped her older sister.

No she couldn't tell her just yet.

'But if I don't tell her now…' Azusa's mind was racing, her pulse quickened. That's right. She had to find out eventually and if Azusa didn't say it now would Ui understand that it was for her sake later?

"Ui…" she muttered, guilt washing over her in giant wave.

Her friend cast a quizzical glance. Azusa's voice caught in her throat "Yui-senpai sh-she-"

The school bell rang drowning out the rest of her confession as the teacher commanded everyone's attention. Leaving Azusa to whisper "coward" to herself again and again until lunchtime.

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><p>Her confession wasn't needed after all. Ui was called out of class early by a teacher. Azusa was called next about a century later (In Azusa time).<p>

Azusa practically ran to the office, desperate to hear of the older guitarist's fate. Once there she found The other music club members along with their advisor and a very worried Ui. "Ah Azusa-chan" Sawako said, noticing the girl's entrance. "Good now that you're all here I can tell you the good news" The teacher paused "Well good might not be the best word but-"She sighed "Yui-chan is going to be just fine." Every face in the room brightened she had a minor head injury from her fall as well as a twisted ankle but nothing particularly life threatening" She cast a glance at Ui "she may even be able to come home tonight"

Ritsu-senpai had canceled the club for the day so that they could all go visit her together after school. Their teacher had even offered to drive them to visit her. The only problem was that every clock in the school was broken. No matter how much she stared at them they stayed still and didn't seem to move. An hour passed, and yet the clock had the nerve to say it was only 3 minutes. 4 hours passed and the clock told her that it had only been 10 minutes. She wondered whether or not to tell her teachers of the plight.

After a day or two the school bell finally rang and the kitten bolted out of the classroom along with Ui. The rest of her club as well as Sawako-sensei met them at the gate a day or three later. How distorted had her sense of time become at this point? Guilt was a horrible thing.

It took everything the kitten had to not pounce on her injured senpai. The guitarist had smiled as they all entered. The two kouhai had tears in their eyes. Surprisingly enough Azusa was the first to snap and hug her senpai. Muttering apologies over and over again.

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><p>AN: And so chapter one comes to an end. I hate the snow (in case this wasn't obvious) It's a devious and analytical thing that has led to the downfall of many a klutz like me. I just wish I had a Yui to save me when the snow attacks...<p> 


	2. The Kitten Fears the Inevitable Plunge

AN: Thanks for your reviews everyone I learned quite a bit. Please keep the corrections and comments coming. I'd also like to say thanks for the encouragement it helps, trust me.

ZIIIX : Sorry that the ending felt rushed, I'll try to watch my pacing more carefully from now on.

Obssesed Nuker : Thank you, I totally didn't realize the punctuation mistakes. I was careful to keep a watchful eye on it in this chapter, and will edit my other chapter in just a moment.

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><p>The Kitten Fears the Inevitable Plunge<p>

The moment never ceased. There she was taking an innocent stroll down and everyday sidewalk. The snowflakes were performing their waltz to the music of a gentle breeze. A certain kitten smiled into the icy air and continued her stroll on this perfectly frozen day. The sun was shining and it wasn't as cold as the weather had been lately. It was the perfect day for an early morning band practice.

Little did she know the cruel intent culminating beneath her feet.

Suddenly, she saw Yui off in the distance waving. With a bright smile the twin-tailed kitten picked up her pace. The wind kicked up, blowing fresh powder in her face. She stumbled forward but caught herself until a push came from behind. Out of the corner of her eye a menacing looking snowman cast a smirk. She braced for impact that didn't seem to come. Suddenly she was in her senpai's arms.

Yui was smiling; all the kitten could do was stare at the image behind her. They were falling.

That falling feeling usually wakes you up right?

Yui whispered something in her ear, something she couldn't quite hear over the whipping of the wind. The snow no longer danced downwards it was now soaring up, it's mission complete. A wall of solid concrete was all that was left to cushion her fall, that and the girl that held her close. "Yui-sen-"

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><p>"Pai!"<p>

Gone was the approaching wall, the snow and the snowman. The cold she felt faded away, replaced by pleasant warmth.

"Ah, Azu-nyan thinks so too Ui~" chimed Yui trying to make her sister understand.

"Onee-chan they have to serve healthy foods here." Ui replied

"Still!" The elder suddenly exclaimed "That doesn't mean you can replace pastries with yogurt! It's a tapestry!"

"I think you mean travesty" Ui corrected

Yui puffed out her cheeks and looked to the awakened kitten, "You agree right Azu-nyan?"

When all she received was a confused and sleepy stare, she turned and grabbed a small cup from the table next to the bed.

"See! They're trying to say this is key-lime pie!" She exclaimed forcing the cup into the kitten's vision "Yogurt is trying to get rid of real pie!"

Ui smiled pleasantly at her sister's antics, it hadn't taken her long to return to her usual bubbly self once she confirmed that her sister was ok.

Azusa's self awareness slowly started to kick in as she noticed where her head was laying. She sat up quickly. Far too quickly, apparently, as the head rush kicked in and sent her into a short bout of dizziness.

Yui's tone changed completely once she felt the kitten's warmth leave her lap "Ehhhh~ why did Azu-nyan wake up~" she said attempting to reach out and hug the smaller girl. Azusa, however, was too far away leaving the guitarist to make hugging motions at the air "Mou! Azu-nyan's so mean!" her voice trailed off as she noticed the glint of wetness in the younger girl's eyes.

"Azu-nyan…" The girl had been crying and apologizing ever since she got to the hospital. Yui had somehow managed to calm her down, though the emotional exhaustion managed to turn the older guitarist into a pillow for the kitten.

The kitten in question noticed the concerned stares of her senpai and quickly wiped the tears from her eyes.

Her voice quivered as she attempted to change the subject "Wh-where did the others go?" she managed to say through a cracked voice. She used this question as an excuse to turn away from the elder guitarist and collect herself.

"Sawako-sensei took them home." Ui replied.

A strong feeling of guilt washed over the kitten at the sound of her friends voice, and she suddenly felt an imaginary tension between the two of them. Ui didn't look particularly upset, but had she ever? Thinking back she had never seen the younger Hirasawa get angry at anything. Would Azusa even know? Maybe that pleasant look was just a mask to hide her anger until they were out of view of the elder.

As if sensing Azusa's internal strife Yui decided to change the mood and held her arms open wide.

"Azu-nyan!" she exclaimed "I need to recharge on Azu-energy!"

Azusa seriously considered taking the offer.

Her legs, on the other hand, wouldn't move. Images of the dream as well as those of reality plagued her mind, leaving the girl conflicted in her feelings.

Ui, on the other hand, had no qualms about rushing over to hug her sister tightly.

"You shouldn't move around so much…" Ui muttered into her sister's chest.

'_Should you say that after you near, tackle her for MY hug?'_ the kitten wondered an odd feeling of anger mixed in with her guilt.

She took small steps towards the elder guitarist.

'I do owe her after all… I can loan out some of my energy right?'

Ui got up with a smile. "I'll go call us a cab to get home." She said, a pleasant warmth radiating from her voice.

"Thank you Ui~" the elder sibling replied.

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><p>Then they were alone.<p>

Even worse, it was silent. No sound at all besides the ever changing tempo of the clock behind her.

Azusa didn't recognize the expression on her senpai's face she seemed to be studying the smaller girl. Maybe it was a sneer in Yui form. Maybe even a look of disgust. In her right mind Azusa would have known that Yui didn't know such emotions and yet her guilt was overpowering her sense of reason.

'Guilt? Was that the feeling?' the kitten's mind questioned. It had to be guilt right? But this emotion felt so new… 'No one ever took an injury for me before' her mind reasoned 'I'm sure it's just a stronger form of guilt than I've ever known.'

Suddenly, Yui went limp.

It took Azusa a second to escape her inner turmoil and break into full blown panic. She spun in place looking for the nurse's call button.

The doctor said she would be alright right? Did she hit her head harder than they had thought? Why is it that you can never find something when you actually need it? Her movements were frantic as she touched her senpai's shoulder.

Then she heard it. "Azu…energy…all..gone."

The lead guitarist held her arms open weakly.

The kitten, on the other hand, was ready to explode.

"That's not funny senpai!" she nearly screamed fresh tears falling down her face.

Her senpai's eyes went wide in surprise at her outburst.

"Are you just making fun of me?" the kitten continued "Did you catch me to toy with me later?" A dam had burst in her heart releasing all of the pent up guilt and emotion she had been bottling.

"Why didn't you just let me fall!" her voice was quivering again "It probably wouldn't have hurt me near as bad… I wouldn't be in this condition… it was just a short fall" Her voice trailed off as her anger turned into liquid sorrow.

Warmth overtook her. The warmth held her tight whispering apologies and stroking her head gently.

"I'm sorry Azu-nyan" the warmth muttered.

The Kouhai refused to hug back, but didn't try to break out of the hold. It was oddly comforting.

Once the kitten had calmed a bit Yui began her explanation. "I was trying to cheer you up…" she said sheepishly "You've seemed down all day after all, s I thought a little joke would-"

"Your joke was cruel!" Azusa interrupted "I've been worried all day about you hitting your head, or being seriously injured."

Yui smiled "I didn't know Azu-nyan cared so much~"

Azusa broke away from the hold and took a few steps away from the girl. "It's because Yui-senpai did something stupid. You should have just let me fall."

"I don't think it was stupid though~" the elder guitarist replied with a serious tone.

Azusa was taken aback by her serious expression.

"Azu-nyan is always putting up with me." She continued "My hugs, my laziness, my weird habits. Yet, she never loses her patience with me."

Azusa's felt her face heat up as she replied "You're not all that bad."

"Hehehe~ see and Azu-nyan is always so nice to me." Yui responded peering into "That's why I don't think it's stupid to try and keep Azu-nyan safe. I would gladly take a broken leg or more to keep you happy and unhurt."

Though Yui looked as though she had more to say she was cut off by the return of her sister. Ui informed them that the car would arrive soon.

Azusa barely heard any of this information. All she could do was question why that little speech from her senpai had called forth such a weird feeling in her chest. Her heart felt as though it was beating to a beat at the speed of sound, and she felt oddly light and fluffy.


	3. Kitty Takes Her First Leap

Having a little trouble with my internet hating fanfiction, so this update was out a little later than I'd originally planned.

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><p>Kitty Takes Her First Leap<p>

With the airhead excused from class for a few days the music club decided against practicing and instead used the time for cake. Azusa sighed when she received the text, but knew that practice just wouldn't be the same without her. The first day came and went with nothing of note occurring.

It was, however, a very awkward day for the young kitten. A feeling that could only be described as loneliness set in from the very beginning of the day. Azusa had stopped by her locker to deposit her shoes and heard nothing.

In reality there was chatting all around, but all of it seemed surreal, as though it wasn't happening near her. There was nothing. No leap, no hugs, no tackling or attempts at kissing, especially no yelling of that ridiculous nickname.

Most of all, there was no Yui.

This realization was odd to the kitten and she had no idea why. Yui had been sick before, she had missed school before and the world had continued on as it always had and most likely always would. Yet, on this day the school that taught hundreds of students felt empty and bare.

The entire school day went by like this. The more the kitten questioned the effects of the senpai's absence the lonelier she felt.

Yui's absence had a similar effect on her sister. Ui looked as though she hadn't slept and was constantly checking her phone for messages from the older girl.

When the lunch bell rang Azusa swallowed hard and approached the younger Hirasawa.

"U-umm" Her face flushed red as she tried to speak "when can Yui-senpai return?"

Ui gave her a blank look, one that very few people even knew the girl possessed.

"Ah- I just wanted to know so I umm know when to start bringing my guitar again" Azusa became even more flustered, but still Ui's expression didn't change.

Her eyes felt cold as though they questioned how worthy she was to have such information. With a sigh Ui began to smile again. "The doctor said she could come back in a few days." She said with a mock happiness "Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to call and check in on her."

With that she fled and left the kitten alone once more.

'3-4 days!' she mentally screamed. Rational Azusa rose to combat this weird new Azusa. 'It's obvious she needs to take time to heal. I only feel this way today because I still feel guilty, by tomorrow this'll be all cleared up. Maybe a few days without her would do me some good'

Her emotions were scary. They felt so foreign. She had the feeling she knew what to call the emotion but her mind just wouldn't come up with the word. Perhaps, it didn't want to. Maybe it was scared.

Maybe _she_ was scared.

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><p>Astonishment? Yeah that word would most likely fit the kouhai's emotion as she approached the school the next day.<p>

Sporting some shiny metallic crutches, was the most well known cake-loving guitarist this side of the neighborhood. Next to her was her younger sister who was obviously going insane at her older sister's actions.

"Ah~ Azu-nyan~" _'Wait she's not going to-'Yui_ picked up speed.

_'She wouldn't dare!' _The look in her eyes said otherwise. Ditching the crutches, she used her one good leg to leap and tackle the poor kitten.

Azusa's first instinct was to dodge it, but her body didn't respond. Her rational side would later say that she didn't want her senpai to fall or injure herself worse. But for whatever reason the girl allowed the warmth of her senpai's hug to envelop her. In fact, for a moment she even hugged back.

She was lost in a daze as her senpai held her close and rubbed their cheeks together.

"Azu-recharge~!" The older guitarist shouted squeezing the kitten tighter than ever before. As lovely as her senpai's warmth felt Azusa was forced back to the reality of their location.

The front gate of the school was not the most private of places after all. So with a push, Yui was forced to stand on one leg and make whining noises at the beet-red kouhai in front of her.

Suddenly, Azusa began to pull at the girl's coat until a tree hid them from the eyes of the students that had just arrived.

Scary Azusa had retaken control and was in total bliss at the situation they were in. She stared into senpai's eyes and moved forward to initiate a hug of her own.

"You could have hurt yourself senpai" Azusa muttered into Yui's jacket.

"I'd hurt myself worse if I ran out of Azu-energy in the middle of the road~" Yui replied petting the girl's head.

"Mou…Shouldn't you be resting?" she muttered in reply

Snowflakes had begun to fall, and most of the students had already entered the school, giving their spot a magical, private feeling to it.

Yui pushed away "I feel fine!" she exclaimed. As if to showcase this perfect health she attempted to put all of her weight on her bad ankle only to have it protest and buckle. Luckily Azusa had prepared for this and caught her. The elder guitarist giggled sheepishly and thanked the kitten.

Azusa stared at her senpai's face for a moment before blushing once more. Had Yui always been this cute?

Her heart stopped at the thought. Her brain ceased to function. All she could do was glow a bright red color and stare.

Ui appeared shortly after handing her sister her crutches and escorting her away from Azusa to scold her for dropping them in the first place.

Once they were out of view Azusa pressed her back against the tree and attempted to breathe. 'What's happening to me…' she thought pressing her cold hands against her overheated face. Yui's image at that golden moment was burned into her mind. She felt the feeling of butterflies she had only read of before in books. Even rational Azusa was forced to admit it.

"I have a crush on Yui-senpai"

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><p>There we go. Hopefully I'll update again later today. I have the next 2 chapter's all outlined and everything (amazing what you can do with a handful of boredom and a math class). So if I get the chance to type em up they'll be out soon.<p>

P.S. Sorry this one turned out so short, it looked much longer when I wrote it.


	4. Free Fall

So obviously this was released much much much later than I had ever wanted it to be. I just wasn't satisfied with it no matter how I typed it .. So I apologize to you all and will try my absolute hardest to make sure this never ever happens again.

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><p>Stairs, stairs were the enemy. They were everywhere and existed solely to prevent the brunette guitarist from getting where she needed to go. If they had to make such troubling things then why couldn't they put the athletic clubs at the top of them all? Why put the music club room waaaaay up there?<p>

Was it some kind of conspiracy to keep her from leading HTT to greatness?

Were her band mates in the same danger as her?

Should she warn them all!

Perhaps this was more the doctor's scheme than the builders'. After all what proof did he have that she even needed these heavy metal things.

She jumped up from her desk suddenly "I don't need these things Sawa-chan!" she exclaimed pointing at the two crutches leaning against the wall.

Sawako's eye twitched as she cast her student a death glance, "That's very nice of you to share with us." she muttered "Now if you would please sit-" before she could finish her sentence Yui had fallen to the floor.

After a few moments of shuffling and offers of help from her classmates Yui politely withdrew her earlier statement and allowed her teacher to continue with the lesson.

Though now that it was painfully (literally) obvious that she would have to use the crutches to get around she would need a way to outsmart the stairs…

#Plan A

Lunchtime rolled around and Yui soon found herself surrounded by her band mates, minus a certain kitten.

"Private! What's your condition?" her partner in crime shouted suddenly. Yui immediately stood and saluted. She began to reply but winced and flopped back onto her desk as dramatically as possible.

"Heavily… wounded." she coughed out, struggling to sit up.

"Oi oi you didn't have to force yourself." Ritsu replied.

Mugi went into panic mode at her friends antics. She looked around for a bit before reaching into her bag and pulling out a notebook. The pianist quickly began to fan the girl with her math notes.

Yui pouted but quickly got back into character and coughed "Need….cake…"

Mugi dropped the notebook and started to search through her bag again.

"Wait seriously!" Ritsu and Mio exclaimed suddenly. The blonde pulled out a phone and went to call her butler. Unfortunately for the guitarist their bassist stopped her.

"We still have cake in the fridge in the club room." Mio said helping their lazy guitarist up.

#Plan B

Even Yui had to admit that Plan B was a long shot, it would require expert timing, cunning and every bit of charisma she possessed to pull it off. She struggled to make it out of the classroom issuing complaints left and right as they made their way down the hall once they reached the stairs it was time to spring the trap.

"Mio-Chan carry me!" Yui shouted, suddenly latching on to the bassist's back.

All around them students stopped and stared. Some giggled and some began to whisper. What they were doing didn't really matter though. The point being, that their attention was on Mio.

"3" Ritsu began, watching as Mio's face flushed red.

"2" she continued. Mio struggled to break out of Yui's death grip

"1" and Mio was down for the count.

Yui quickly revised her plan "Ricchan!" she dove but was quickly sidestepped. She pouted before turning to Mugi who had been smiling serenely through this whole ordeal. "Mugi-Chan!"

'_Bing bong bing bong'_

"Eh…?"

And so Yui was forced to go without her precious cake for lunch, in fact, thanks to the guitarist, the entire band was forced to go hungry, with the exception of the absent kitten.

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><p>Said kitten had an ordeal of her own to deal with.<p>

She stared blankly into the gray skies listening to the random chatter of those around her. She picked at her lunchbox and tried her best to hear the words Jun was saying.

The sound of her friend's voice seemed distant even though they were sitting so close. Every so often the brown haired guitarist would flash through her mind and send the butterflies in her stomach into a frenzy.

Just when had this started? Sure she had admitted this to herself only hours ago, but the feelings had been there for awhile right?

She thought back to when Yui had fallen on the ice. More specifically the emotion she had felt at that time. What had caused her to space out in the first place?

Jun finally gave up. She had been confused to find that Azusa hadn't gone to the club room for lunch or even to her senpai's classroom. Thinking that perhaps she had wanted to hang out with her and Ui she had happily pulled their desks together and started up some small talk.

Azusa had been responsive at first but after around 5 minutes the guitarist Jun could tell that her thoughts were elsewhere.

The puffy haired bassist simply sighed and turned to Ui. The younger Hirasawa wasn't any better of a conversationalist than Azusa.

The three of them slowly drifted back to their original spots as the bell rang signaling the end of lunch.

The rest of the school day drifted by rather quickly and before Jun could say her goodbyes her friends had disappeared.

Her ponytails bounced as she made her way up the stairs. As always Mugi was the first to welcome her to the clubroom, the other members followed suit. Though her daily tackling never came, Azusa didn't let it bother her.

She sipped at her tea and poked at the strawberry resting atop her cake. Mugi had decided to celebrate Yui's return with her favorite cake. Azusa bit her lip 'A cake especially for her and she doesn't even show up' she thought to herself 'this can't be a crush not with someone so irresponsible…and weird….and…and'

Azusa sighed, earning a glance from her fellow club members. "Mio-senpai..." she muttered "what do you do when you're in love?"

Her senpai's reactions were as follows:

Ritsu's face hit the desk in front of her.

Mugi's face twisted into a blissful smile

And the senpai she had come to for advice, the one she was counting on. Her precious Mio-senpai had turned red and lost her voice.

Azusa blushed as well "I-I don't know if it's umm..."

Ritsu looked up at her mischievously.

"Ritsu-senpai don't look at me like- Mugi-senpai stop with the smile!"

Ritsu started to inch closer only to receive a knock on the head from her childhood friend. Mio then looked at Mugi… and hit Ritsu again.

Ritsu made her way to a nearby corner rubbing her head and grumbling. Mugi accompanied her to make sure she was ok.

Azusa felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up at her obviously nervous senpai with tears of embarrassment slowly forming in her eyes.

"Why don't you tell me about it ok?" the bassist said with a soft smile.

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><p>"Thank you Ui~" Yui chimed as her sister helped her up the last step. The younger Hirasawa gave a small smile.<p>

"No problem Onee-chan just make sure you get someone to help you get back down ok?" she paused "O-or call me."

"Ok~" the elder replied placing her hand on the door handle. From within she heard the voice of her favorite little Kouhai.

"I…I think I like someone- a boy." Azusa said, stumbling over her words. She wasn't quite ready to tell them that it was Yui. "So I thought maybe… since Mio-senpai is so popular she could help me out..."

Mio blushed at the praise. It would be far too hard to tell her kouhai about her lack of experience while she was being held to such high regard. The closest Mio had gotten was a few love letters in her locker from her fan club members.

Mio's eyes shifted to HTT's drummer "Did you tell them…how you feel?"

Azusa thought about it for a moment "but what if… the person is a friend of mine… it could ruin everything!"

Mio bit her lip _'same situation huh?' _"Even then… some people are just too dense to get it without a little push and if you two go on as just friends for too long… It'll only get harder."

Azusa nodded slowly, taking in this advice. Her pulse quickened at the thought of telling Yui any of this but she knew she had to if she wanted things to move forward.

Right outside the club room door their guitarist was frozen she wasn't completely sure why… but her body didn't want to move. Even the enticing scent of cake wafting from the room before her couldn't bring her to move.

"Azu-nyan… likes someone?"

* * *

><p>AN: Threw in some love for Mitsu, my most beloved non-Azu pairing (seriously she can be paired with anyone and be adorable.) There'll probably be more Mitsu stuff in upcoming chapters, though it'll be side stuff for the most part.<p> 


	5. The Turtle Changes Course

Golden sunlight wafted its way into the room bathing a certain twin-tailed guitarist in its gentle glow. All around her students were scrambling against the clock hoping to finish their tests on time. A certain kitten, however, had come prepared, and even managed to finish early enough for a little cat nap beneath the warmth of the sun.

Despite the cold of winter, not a cloud was in the sky, and so only the window blocked the sun's path to the girl.

Dreams of a successful band practice danced through her head. Yui's own interest in practice had even caused Azusa to note that she must be dreaming.

Azusa's sleeping form stirred slightly as the dream world shifted to one her mind could more readily believe. Mugi came to the realization that she hadn't forgotten the cake today. It had, in fact, been in the secret cake cooler within her bag.

Now it seemed more like a nightmare as the entire band, including Mio, had traded their instruments for cake. With a sigh, dream Azusa accepted a slice.

Noticing something odd Azusa could do nothing but stare at the slice. The dream became clearer and she noted how extravagant the cake appeared. It was beautifully decorated, a cake you would expect from a… "Congratulations!" the HTT members exclaimed releasing confetti into the air.

Beside her Yui blushed and Azusa did a double take. Yui's appearance almost made the embarrassing display completely worth it. Dressed in a simple white wedding dress with a thin white veil covering her face, Azusa could still see the purity and love within those eyes. It was enough to take the small girl's breath away. It was enough to distract her from the fact that she was apparently the groom, dressed in a black tux with her usual twin-tails replaced with a single ponytail.

Mugi (Who was apparently the minister) began to read the two the vows. 'zusa…' "Do you Nakano Azusa" 'chan…' "Agree to take Hirasawa Yui as your lawfully wedded wife?"

Dream Azusa was calm and peered into her wife-to-be's eyes 'zusa-chan' "I…" "Azusa!" "..do"

Azusa was startled from her near perfect dream by Jun's whispering. She looked around noting that a few people were still testing. Jun threw her a thumbs up before looking back to her test.

"Pencils down" The teacher muttered simply inciting various reactions from the students. Jun's face met her desk and Ui sighed, content with her work.

Azusa was in a trance "Why was I the groom?..." she whispered to herself. 'Shouldn't I be more worried about the wedding altogether?' Her hands drifted up to rub her eyes sleepily.

She looked over at Jun muttering out a lazy "Thanks for waking me". Jun's face remained embedded in her desk.

"Are you ok?" Ui said with a hint of concern in her voice "You seemed like you were having a bad dream for awhile."

Azusa's face flushed "I-it was interesting."

"Your brain…" Azusa heard from behind her. She turned around just as Jun leapt at her "Give me some of your brains! You have enough right!"

Azusa's eyes went from those of surprise to those of disinterest in record time.

"Let's go" Azusa said making a gesture at the younger Hirasawa. The puffy-haired bassist followed with a sour look on her face.

"How in the world did you have enough time for a nap!" Jun exclaimed.

"I actually study" the kitten replied simply.

Ui smiled "She has a point though Azusa-chan it wasn't exactly an easy test"

"Well… with Yui injured we've been practicing even less than usual" Azusa muttered with her eyes scanning the floor.

Ui's smile dropped just as Jun's appeared "I figured Senpai had just rubbed off on you~" she said with a mocking tone "That's why you're taking naps all of a sudden"

To be honest Azusa wished this was the case. She hadn't seen much of Yui in the past week and was really beginning to miss the older girl. She was still trying to muster up the courage to follow Mio's advice and Yui's lack of contact definitely wasn't helping Azusa believe that the elder guitarist was interested.

Azusa parted with her friends at the stairs and adjusted Muttan on her back as she made her way to the club room. This walk that had once been the highlight of her day had become something she dreaded. Light music club without Yui just felt so…empty. Even amongst all her other senpai she felt alone.

Halfway up the stairs she heard the familiar sound of their over-active guitarist. Her heart skipped a beat and she began to run up the rest of the stairs before bursting into the music room.

There she was… her precious senpai strumming at the guitar just as she remembered. Missing the same notes that Azusa had practiced with her again and again. But now wasn't the time for that. She happily braced herself for the incoming tackle.

It never came.

"Ah" Yui said, her voice lacking its usual energy "Hi Azusa-chan"

'_Huh…?'_

"U-ui?" Azusa questioned with a quivering voice "That wasn't funny…" Azusa high hopes for the day had now crashed back into this horrible reality.

"Hm? I'm not Ui, I'm Yui~" The imposter replied gesturing at her cast.

Azusa wasn't fooled "Ui if she's still too hurt to come to practice-"

"I keep telling you that I'm Yui"

"Then call me my nickname like you usually do." Azusa said, a nostalgic feeling bubbling in her chest.

"Azu-nyan" Yui muttered her face flushing a little bit.

Azusa felt her heart skip a beat; she had been longing to hear that nickname for a while. "Ge-Geez Yui-senpai, don't do that."

Yui didn't meet Azusa's gaze "It annoys you when I cal you that doesn't it…?"

Azusa smiled "All of a sudden you're concerned with how I feel about it?" she replied with a hint of laughter.

Yui tensed up "Then I'll stop." She said grabbing her guitar again "Everyone let's practice!"

Azusa jumped and turned around behind her was the rest of HTT. How long had they been standing there?

"Oooh~ that's a nice attitude you have there private" Ritsu exclaimed making her way to her drum set. "Yosh! In honor of our guitarist's return"

The rest of the band mates fell in line. Yui on the other hand remained seated due to her leg. "One, two," the club president tapped her drumsticks together and started to play. The others followed suit.

* * *

><p>The light music club followed this pattern for the next week or so. Yui remained the most adamant about practice despite both Ritsu's and Mugi's efforts. The effects of this new Yui were far worst on the youngest band member.<p>

Azusa never thought she could come to hate her own name as badly as she had come to. It was as though all she heard from her senpai was "Azusa-chan this or that".

To make matters worse there was the practice. Yui had almost completely stopped eating cake or drinking tea before, during or after practice. Azusa knew that she should be ecstatic and yet she couldn't get past this overwhelming sense of emptiness.

What had happened to her precious bubbly Yui-senpai?

* * *

><p>AN: Hello again~ I'd like to apologize once again for the wait and try once again to finish this story without a 6 month delay.<p>

A small note about the next chapter. It will most likely be a short chapter in Yui's perspective. (Since I've really only been focusing on Azusa's point of view.) and it should be up in no time.

I'd also like to know if anyone's interested in seeing the original version of this story. It's rather dark (You can kinda guess how from the story's theme). So I didn't want it to be my first official fanfiction. So if you see a oneshot from me soon that may be it.


	6. The Turtle Comes to a Halt

AN: Handwriting is evil. I usually handwrite everything in class and type it up once I get home but some of my more recent writing have come up incredibly short after I finished typing them. So either I write too big, or notebook paper is too small!

* * *

><p>Pit pit pat pitti pitti pat pat pititititi pat~<p>

Ritsu's head bobbed with the each swing of her drumsticks. Her energy was under control and her rhythm was spot on. The magazines on the other hand had seen better days. The covers had all but worn off, long destroyed by the over-active drummer's strength. Mio sat across from her tuning Elizabeth to near perfection while Mugi simply smiled serenely, happy to be amongst her friends for another day.

The two guitarists had yet to arrive.

In Azusa's case this was rather odd, as the girl usually tried to preempt the serving of cake in order to prevent the older guitarist from simply lazing around as usual. Though, with the way Yui had been behaving lately Azusa could have easily relaxed and came to the club at her own pace.

Yui had finished the last week in 'perfect senpai' mode. She arrived early and left late. She urged the others to practice and wouldn't even take a bite of any of Mugi's cakes. In the beginning it had come as a shock to the entire club. However as it continued it became obvious to the older members that this was still Yui being Yui.

Nodoka had told them before that once Yui had a goal in mind she would keep at it until it was reached. Whatever was motivating her now was important enough for the elder guitarist to change her usual behavior.

The senpai of the club had accepted this and were simply using this burst of enthusiasm to get some practice done at first (Though Ritsu still had at least a slice of cake before practice). Azusa was the only one that still seemed distressed.

Mio was in close second for most concerned. Several times she had tried to get the guitarist to talk and several times Yui had deflected the subject. So after a bit of "coercing" she enlisted the help of her energetic friend and Mugi, who was more than happy to lend a hand.

A weekend of planning and preparation by phone was all it took. Mugi and Ritsu had worked out some kind of "secret weapon", and Mio had worked up the nerve to speak up.

They'd launch the operation as soon as they found an opening. Mio seemed to be the only one worried about the outcome.

* * *

><p>The older guitarist, on the other hand, was burnt out. Her legs were wobbly her breathing was erratic and the stairs weren't helping. An entire week without any cake or Azu-energy had left her a weakened blob.<p>

She heard movement behind her and stood up straight, walking in the most 'senpai-like' way she could. A sigh of relief escaped as she noticed that it wasn't her Azu-nyan behind her.

She took several deep breaths before opening the door to the clubroom. Mugi was the first to greet her followed by Mio and Ritsu. With a smile she shifted her guitar to her other shoulder and looked at Azusa… or where Azusa was supposed to be.

"Eh…?" Yui said with a quizzical glance at HTT's drummer , her earlier smile drooping into a frown "Where's Azu-nyan?"

Mio and Ritsu both looked up at the guitarist in an instant, while Mugi's smile simply brightened.

Realizing what she had done Yui quickly corrected herself "Ehem I mean Azusa-chan… Wh-where is she?" her face flushed a bit. The lack of cake and Azu-energy had a stronger effect on Yui than she had expected.

"Nakano's not here yet." Ritsu said as she stood and walked over to the door. After checking outside to be sure their kitten-like kouhai was nowhere in sight she shut and locked the door before walking back and sitting back down.

"Wh-why are you locking the door?" Yui muttered, visibly worried "She could come and think the club was-"

"Yui" Mio said with a sigh. Yui was shocked to hear Mio speak up, but before she could reply the bassist continued "How about you finally tell us what's going on?"

Mugi appeared with a pot of tea prepared.

"What do you mean Mio-chan?" Yui replied with a fake smile.

"Nakano's not here. You don't need to keep up the act." Ritsu interjected with a grin.

Yui's mind raced to come up with something, noticing this Ritsu began to grin mischievously. "Mugi! Prepare the secret weapon!"

"Hai!" Mugi replied with a salute before rushing off. She returned with an extravagant silver platter covered with several small chocolate cakes all topped with strawberries with adorable faces drawn in chocolate syrup.

The plan was to hit every one of Yui's weaknesses.

Cute? Check

Food? Check

Cake? Check

Strawberries? Check.

The perfect Yui based weapon was born.

It took a total of 13 seconds for the guitarist to break.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later and Yui was sipping at tea just like before with chocolate frosting at random points on her face. This elicited a sigh from their bassist.<p>

"How about you explain now?" Mio muttered, her voice full of concern.

Yui's eyes peered into her lap, she looked back up suddenly. "You guys cheated."

Ritsu flicked the guitarist's forehead.

"Azu-nyan… doesn't trust me." Yui muttered with a sad smile.

"What do you-"

"She told you about the boy she liked right?" Yui muttered

Mio caught on to where this was going.

"She visited me in the hospital a few days before that and didn't say anything…" Yui continued "I-I guess it shouldn't really bother me"

Tears began to well up in her eyes and her face flushed a deep red. "I mean, I'm irresponsible and clingy and I never say the right thing at the right time… I'm forgetful, and airheaded at times and I'm sure I'm a bother to her and…and…" Her voice had started to crack and her breathing had sped up a bit as tears started to fall.

"I just thought that maybe… If I was REALLY good" she paused to rub at her eyes with her sleeves "If I was really good maybe she would trust me and that would be enough…"

Mio bit her lip, the last part had caught her attention and though she wanted to ask she had a feeling she already knew the answer.

Mugi moved in to hug the distraught guitarist. Ritsu attempted to distance herself by staring blankly at Ton-chan's tank. Mio sighed and opened her mouth to speak but another voice beat her to it.

This one was quiet and if it wasn't for the dead silence of the room after Yui's break down, then nobody would have heard it. Yui froze up as the realization hit.

The voice, dissatisfied at the lack of a reply repeated itself.

"Would be enough for what…senpai?"

* * *

><p>AN: And cliffhanger! This was a rather emotional chapter huh? Hard to believe that it's so close to its end~ I may throw in a fluff chapter or something afterwards, but story-wise the next chapter is the finale. Thanks for all of your reviews and support!<p> 


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